Ten months old

My little bubba boo is ten months old. Which means she won’t be my little bubba boo for that much longer. Well, that’s not true because she’ll always be my little bubba boo, even when she’s 35 (and will be mortified to think I ever called her bubba boo).

Juno has been a busy little bee in the last couple of weeks. She’s mastered crawling, kneeling and appears to be trying to stand. The cot has been dropped so now we don’t have to worry about her working out how to pull herself up into standing and then falling out.

Her latest thing is to get herself in the downward dog pose – hands flat on the floor, up on her feet with her butt sticking up in the air. It’s hilarious to see but less so when she does a face-plant and starts crying. Then it’s time for cuddles.

She’s also licking everything. The floor, the walls, the sliding door… Which is why we don’t bother sterilizing anything any more. That time is well and truly past. The phrase don’t lick that!! is often heard and then followed by the mandatory accompanying sigh as she proceeds to lick whatever it is we’d prefer she didn’t. Because, as everyone knows, you can’t stop a baby from doing anything if they’re determined to do it.

But as always, she’s utterly charming. She’s just too adorable. It’s amazing to watch her discover the world. Sometimes she will sit at our living room sliding door and stare outside. When she does that I often wonder what she’s thinking. Then she’ll lick the door and I stop wondering. I didn’t know having a baby would be like this. It’s hard work, it’s infuriating, it’s monotonous but then there are these moments that beyond words. There is such joy. Like the moment she crawled for the first time. I was so worried we’d miss seeing that because she goes to childcare now. But nope, she saved it up and did it here.

Next week is my last official week of maternity leave. I’ve extended it for a bit longer by taking some annual leave so my return date is March 30. It feels so strange think that I have to go back to work. I can’t quite get my head around the fact that it’s been a year – a year!! – since I was at work. It feels like it’s been ages but it also feels like it’s gone by so fast. The past 51 weeks have been the most difficult and rewarding of my life. Life is so utterly different now. I’m not sure how much I’ve changed but I guess I have. I don’t think you could have a baby and not be different. If nothing else, Juno has taught me patience and once again reminded that it’s okay to let that which does not matter, slide. That’s something I had forgotten but now I try to not worry about the things that really aren’t important and to focus my energy to where it’s best spent – on my family.